Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has acknowledged that the red cards shown to Sphephelo Sithole and Themba Zwane were major setbacks in South Africa’s FIFA World Cup opener against Mexico, but remains confident that his squad has the depth and quality to respond positively in their remaining group-stage matches.
South Africa’s World Cup campaign got off to a difficult start with a 2-0 defeat to Mexico, a result made even more challenging after Bafana were reduced to nine men following the dismissals of Sithole and Zwane.
Speaking after the match, Broos accepted the referee’s decision to send off Sithole, admitting the midfielder’s challenge left the official with little choice.
“It’s never nice for any player to receive a red card in the first game of a World Cup,” said Broos.
“For the first red card, I think you have to accept it. The opponent was through on goal and Yaya fouled him, so I can understand the referee’s decision.”
However, the Belgian tactician was less convinced by the decision to dismiss Zwane, arguing that the incident was open to interpretation and may have been judged too harshly.
“The second one is open for discussion because, from my point of view, it was the Mexican player who blocked my player,” Broos explained.
“It comes down to the referee’s interpretation, and we have to accept that as well. But I do think it may have been a little too soft to justify a red card.”
Despite losing two key players to suspension for the next match, Broos remains optimistic about his team’s prospects and believes there is enough quality within the squad to fill the void.
“We now have two players who won’t be available for the next game, but we still have other players who are ready to step in,” he said.
“If we can show the same mentality and play the same way we did today, I’m confident we will get good results in the next two matches.”
Although the defeat and the two dismissals have complicated Bafana Bafana’s path to the knockout stages, Broos believes his side showed enough resilience, organisation and fighting spirit against a strong Mexican team to remain hopeful of a turnaround.
South Africa will look to revive their World Cup campaign when they face the Czech Republic on 18 June before concluding their group-stage fixtures against South Korea on 25 June.
Written by: Sandile Ndumo
